This invention relates to a remote control toy vehicle having a single driving wheel.
There are many types of radio controlled toy vehicles on the market. Many of these are models of full sized vehicles. Most, if not all, have a pair of driving wheels.
It is an object of this invention to provide a radio controlled toy vehicle having a single driving wheel.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a radio controlled toy vehicle having a single driving wheel that is fully maneuverable and capable of performing lifting turns.
These and other objects are obtained by providing a radio controlled toy vehicle having a single driving wheel that is drivingly coupled to first and second reversible electric motors. By xe2x80x9creversiblexe2x80x9d electric motor is meant an electric motor whose drive shaft can be turned either clockwise or counterclockwise. The first and second reversible electric motors are attached to first and second chassis bodies, respectively, the chassis bodies being located on opposite sides of the driving wheel. The driving wheel is rotatably mounted on a primary axle (beam), and the chassis bodies are rotatably attached to the same primary axle at their pivot points.
Distal to the pivot points of the chassis bodies are first and second support wheels that are rotatably attached to a lower outer portion of said first and second chassis bodies, respectively. The support wheels guide the vehicle in a straight line during forward or reverse motion and allow for smooth action during lifting and turning movements.
The distance between the pivot points of the chassis bodies and the distal bottom of the support wheels is greater than the radius of the driving wheel; this provides mechanical advantage to the driving wheel and for lifting and turning of the vehicle. Stated another way, the distance between the axis of the primary axle and the axis of the axle upon which either of the support wheels is rotatably mounted plus the radius of that support wheel is greater than the radius of the driving wheel.
The vehicle is steered by controlling the operation and direction of each motor. The vehicle is capable of moving forward, reverse, turning left and right. When one motor direction is the reverse of the other, the vehicle will cease being propelled by the driving wheel, and the individual chassis bodies will swing around their pivot points in opposite directions. The simultaneous and opposing actions of the chassis bodies lifts and turns the vehicle.
Chassis body extensions are provided to increase the effective width of the vehicle beyond that of the width of the driving wheel by itself so that the vehicle width is greater than the diameter of the driving wheel, thereby causing the driving wheel to preferentially stay in contact with the surface over which the vehicle is being driven.
Since the vehicle is comprised mainly of a single driving wheel it is able to freely roll over or bounce off obstacles without the likelihood of becoming disabled.